Disaster was narrowly averted after a holidaying father-and-son drove their four-wheel drive vehicle and attached caravan to Corbière Lighthouse… and then had to reverse along the causeway as the waves threatened to engulf them.
Fortunately the incident, which has already been viewed tens of thousands of times on various social media platforms, was not a real-life emergency. The film shoot had in fact been carefully planned by Land Rover, which brought comedian and actor Jack Whitehall and his father Michael to the Island to make an advertisement for the new Land Rover Discovery.
The four-minute clip begins with the Whitehalls driving along the Five Mile Road, recreating family ‘camping’ holidays by towing an Airstream caravan, before making the diversion to Corbière.
The advertisement highlights Land Rover’s new ‘advanced tow assist’ feature, which enables drivers to navigate their way out of tricky situations – in this case featuring a narrow causeway, a 6.8m caravan and a siren warning of the oncoming tide.
Land Rover worked with Visit Jersey to set up the film-shoot.
Meryl Laisney, head of product at Visit Jersey, said: ‘We are proud to attract globally-recognised brands such as Land Rover to the Island.
‘Collectively they help us to share Jersey’s story and celebrate Jersey’s natural beauty.
‘Over the past couple of years, we have worked with brands such as Strava, JoJo Maman Bébé, Barbour, Top Gear France, Lidl and St. James.
‘The advert is fun and spirited – exactly what Jersey is about.’
Ms Laisney said that the shoot producer responsible for finding the location, Chris Hook, had been impressed by the location and its accessibility from within 15 minutes of arriving at Jersey Airport from London.
Visit Jersey plans to capitalise on the Land Rover advert by enticing visitors to plan their own ‘epic detour’ to the Island.
The advertisement can be seen at youtu.be/m4fzr7c5QoU.
